A Shard's Worth Of A Mirror Image
by Emeliore
Summary: In his quest to recover his faerie gold, young prodigy Artemis Fowl stumbles into the Wizarding World. CHAPTER SEVEN. Severus commits a grievous yet subtle mistake which would in the later events cause Artemis and Hogwarts a lot of trouble.
1. Seeming Derision

Disclaimer: I own naught of the following characters. JKR owns Harry Potter and the other characters in the series while Eoin Colfer owns Artemis Fowl and other respective characters.

A Shard's Worth of a Mirror-Image 

Chapter One: Seeming Derision

"Juliet!"

Thorns tore at pale skin, digging at the boy's flesh as he parted them with his bare hands, trying to get past the forest of thorns and vines, which seemed to conspire against him. There was nobody he could turn to, now that Butler insisted on him leaving since, as wounded as he was (Butler) now, he was only a liability. Now with Butler gone, there were no pair of big hands to help him, no large hulking piece of a man ready to assist him in going against obstacles. 

_Butler would have risked running around with a serious wound in his chest if he ever knew his sister is in danger,_ thought the boy grimly. In their attempt to recover the faerie gold stolen from them by English goblins, they somehow had ended up in a strange forest wherein, seemingly, it was eternally nighttime. _Midnight, to be exact,_ thought the boy, judging by the position of the moon. All was well, until his small group of three encountered a gathering of about twenty people covered in cloaks and with faces behind white masks that were meant to intimidate. The gathering, who addressed the boy and his two companions _Mudbloods_, had immediately taken a…liking to them and started playing with them. If hexing and sexual harassment were your kind of playing.

An hour ago Butler, his large bodyguard, had bought him and Butler's baby sister Juliet time. All was well, even though Artemis could very well tell that the leader of the gathering, whose visage seemed to have been melted by chemicals, was only toying with them, giving them time to run farther so that they would be hunted in the next few moments. He was right, as he had calculated, but he was at the moment defenseless without Butler, and despite Juliet's knowledge in martial arts, it was quite useless since they just hexed her clothes right off her, and that was already enough to incapacitate her.

It was approximately fifteen minutes and ten seconds since his own escape. Errant tears sprang from his eyes as Juliet's screams of terror replaced Ravel's Bolero as his object for the Last Song Syndrome.* But the most heart-rending were Juliet's last words to him before they were torn apart:

"Artemis, don't worry about me! Go!"

_All this they were willing to do, for me,_ thought Artemis, his mind threatening to lose hold of his usual calm demeanor. _It wasn't meant to be this way! Faeries were not meant to be above ground for this night!_ But the People they encountered were too tall to be faeries…were they human? They had batons…

Artemis would have pondered on the subject longer, but rather suddenly, Artemis felt his strength flowing out of him as fast as blood through a pierced artery. 

_Poisoned thorns…_

Falling face down in the cold, damp ground, his last thought was this:

_This is just a minor circumstance…this is just…_

But deep in his heart Artemis doubted himself. For the first time.

As soon as Severus was sure that the other Death Eaters were out of the Forbidden Forest, along with their latest Muggle acquisition, he tried to trace the path of the young boy who had escaped. Usually in his attempt to 'retrieve' a person, as he quite _fondly_ calls it, his objective is to save the person's life. Not in this case. His main concern was that the young Muggle would not return to wherever he came from and loosely tattle about Wizards and magic. All hell would break loose.

"DIFFINDO!" Severus' booming (but usually soft and cold) voice accompanied the violet flash of light which cleared a path for him among the poisonous foliage, not minding the fact that the human could hear him say words meant for magic. An _obliviate_ should do the trick for him afterwards. Running as fast as the lightning despite the fact that Voldemort had just cast Crucio on him just a few hours ago, he caught a glimpse of the unconscious Muggle boy face down, flat on the ground. 

"Merlin," Severus breathed as he immediately saw the cause of the boy's loss of consciousness. _This boy still had a hundred Arlise thorns stuck in his skin._

_Forget casting Obliviate,_ Severus thought grimly as he quickly assessed the boy's injuries on the spot. _Better move him to the Infirmary._ Deciding that he could consider the life of the boy under his jurisdiction, since his troubles were caused by him meeting the Death Eaters, he picked up the boy using the Mobilicorpus spell and dashed towards Hogwarts.

Harry was tasked by Severus to sit by the boy's bedside in the Infirmary, and since he was a Muggle, Severus gave him implicit orders to make the boy's cubicle look as if it had belonged to a Muggle hospital. So Harry closed the curtains around them, and hid his wand.

He was about to fall asleep when he heard the figure stirring on the bed. 

"Are you alright?" asked Harry, quite concerned. The boy had nasty cuts in his arms. He could not help but feel odd. Looking at the boy made him feel like he was witnessing what happened to him at the end of his first and also his fourth year at Hogwarts. Ending up in a hospital bed, in pain, and with absolutely no clue where he was. For ten seconds, at least.

"Yes, I am fine," the boy murmured as he took in his surroundings, which is not much, since the curtains were closed. "Where am I?" 

"You're in…um…" Harry fumbled for a conspicuously Muggle name for a hospital, "Saint Ignatius' Hospital." _There,_ Harry mentally patted himself on the back. He couldn't help but feel wary around the boy. For a Muggle, he felt too _Slytherin_. But this boy, as Harry had observed his quite _scientific_ way of appraising the surroundings, he was not a typical nasty Slytherin, and not even remotely like Malfoy, No, this one looked a miniature version of his Potions Master. Calm, and even in his injured way, calculating. Just thinking about Snape's Mini-me made the image of Malfoy look like candy in Harry's eyes. Besides, Draco was just all air and no…brain, like this one obviously had.

_Smooth waters run deep,_ Harry mused, remembering the adage. _They also kill by drowning, which is often._ Harry fought to keep his face indifferent despite his concern and curiosity towards the figure on the bed. Again, comparing the boy to Draco, this one was decidedly deadly. While Harry could know Draco was probably plotting something judging the noise he make while at it, this one more probably kept to himself.

The reason why Harry could know so much about one person in just a few minutes time was that he was like him. 

Meanwhile, the boy's cold, blue eyes seemed to be unconvinced of Harry's answer. Then they flickered, his eyes turning frozen. Harry was right to assume that the boy was cold and calculating. He became even more wary. His cover was blown, he knew it. _So much for Snape's orders. Too bad I don't know Obliviate._

"There is no Hospital by that name in this area," the boy whispered, still weak. "Are you lying to me?" Cold blue eyes met Harry's determined green. 

"Well, do you think I would tell you that I'm lying if I am?" Harry bluffed; almost sure that it would overthrow the strange boy into doubt. He was wrong. 

"Good answer," the boy said with a weak though distant smile. "You didn't have to hide that baton, you know. And the fact that you could use magic with it."

Harry almost could not contain his shock. _How could he know?_ He was a Muggle, he was sure of it, but one obvious sign that the boy had only encountered Wizards now was that he called wands _batons_. "For your information, this is a wand," Harry said blithely as he could muster, pulling the wand out of his pocket, not wanting to lose the battle of wills against the bedridden boy. He handed it to the boy for him to satisfy his curiosity.

"That's funny. I thought magicians would want to escape stereotyping, but I don't think calling this thing a wand would help much." The boy weakly fondled the stick with his fingers, wondering at the same time what was it that made flashes of light emanate from it. He could ask the boy watching over him, of course, but he doubted that he could supply him with sufficient answers. 

They both remained that way for several awkward moments (in Harry's part, at least), until Harry decided to break the silence.

"My name's Harry," Harry said suddenly, the realization that they still did not know each other's names dawning over him.

"Artemis," the other boy returned, his attention still on the wand, then stopped himself and reached his left hand which was firmly accepted by Harry's right. "Artemis Fowl the Second."

Severus held his nocturne vigil for that night in Remus Lupin's office, with Lupin beside him, the lupine professor searching the Internet database via a noteook computer charmed so that it could work within Hogwarts and also gain unlimited access through a makeshift connection to the Net. 

Severus could only sit quietly, not even minding that his arm was draped over Lupin's shoulders in an attempt to shift to a better angle so that he could catch the proper spectrum of color properly. He was dealing with an LCD monitor, after all. Looking at wrong angles negated the colors. Clearly, Severus was enthralled with what the electronic universe could offer when it came to information. For a moment he felt envious of Lupin's computer-savvy, which he most probably earned in his years-long jaunt in the Muggle world, where werewolves only existed in television and the theatre.

"Aha! There it is," Remus pointed to a strip of text just below the picture of a boy who looked like the one Severus had brought into Hogwart's Infirmary. The picture had shown the boy, while a bit younger, still had the pale gaunt face, sleek dark hair, and frosted blue eyes. "I knew I saw him before," Remus exclaimed triumphantly. "This Artemis Fowl is the boy whom the goblins had been complaining to me about, when I was recruiting one of them for last year's Defense classes." Grinning as a wolf, no pun intended, he took a long deep breath, stretched, and faced the Potions master with a content countenance, which the other did not take too kindly.

"Before you pat yourself on the back for a job well done Lupin," Severus coldly said, "Tell me how this tiny fact that this Artemis Fowl is the object of the goblin's infantile ire is going to help us."

Remus was not fazed out of his contented state. "Based on what I heard about him, Artemis Fowl always had reasons in his travels. Once, it had been to steal the faerie ransom funds."

"What? That teenage runt?"

Remus only shrugged, smiling ruefully. "Why don't you ask him, Severus? I highly doubt that the kid ended up in the Forbidden Forest for a moonlight walk." He then turned his attention towards the monitor again and made certain adjustments in the computer. Switching the connection from Muggle DSL cable to Faerie Plasma-optic HFN** system, he accessed the Faerie Information Highway for Artemis Fowl. After a minute, which seemed like an eternity to the professors, they were finally reading an unofficial, though still credible, database file on Artemis Fowl.

"Responsible for the kidnapping of LEPrecon Captain Holly Short," Remus read from a bulleted list of Artemis's exploits. 

"But later made an alliance with the LEPrecon against the Goblin Insurgence…"

Severus bristled. The Goblin Insurgence. There was a race of underground goblins who were surprisingly stupid (given the size of their brains) who would kill their own clansmen in their own stupidity and greed. Somehow, it reminded Severus of the present status of the Death Eaters…

"So this Muggle boy I have hauled in here is some sort of a prodigy…" Severus mused aloud, trying to bounce off ideas from Remus Lupin, whom he had come to trust for his intelligence. He may have hated the werewolf once for the school prank orchestrated by Sirius Black, but unknowing by others Severus had come to outgrown it, his hatred for Lupin once was fueled instead by the werewolf's seeming complacency towards the canine animagus.

"You seem to resent having him be submitted to Obliviate, eh, Severus?" Remus asked. He seemed to smell resentment and concern emanating from the other man, two familiar smells for a wolf. Also, he knew that Severus would kill to have a student of that caliber in Hogwarts. Not even Tom Riddle could have been that intelligent, and he didn't even have his own Interpol record. Artemis, on the other hand, had, despite his age. Fifteen. If this unofficial account on Artemis Fowl is to be trusted, then he probably had the Interpol record by the age of twelve. Remus sucked in air as he processed the knowledge in his brain. Brilliant.

"Frankly, I don't want that boy to be Oblivated just yet," Severus said, removing his arm from Remus' shoulder. "If he notices that his companions were missing, he would most likely snoop around for clues. He would know that somehow, something has happened to make it so. And with a boy of that," Severus pointed a slender finger towards the screen to the spot where Artemis' IQ percentage was written in bold font, "…intelligence, I wouldn't be surprised if he ended up here. Again. And with Merlin knows what in tow."

"So…you are suggesting that we keep the boy until you rescue his companions, is that it?"

"Maybe. I do not know." 

In the moonlight glow, Artemis worried about whether Butler was alive, somewhere, and if Juliet was still…alive. If it were any other boy, Artemis would have broken down and cried for his parents, but Artemis Fowl was no other boy. He was planning something, and it would be more helpful if he bid his time in the place where he was recuperating right now. By the looks of it and from what he had discerned from Harry, the one who had been looking after him until midnight, this place was an institute for humans who could use magic. Real wizards.

If it were possible, one could hear the cogs of Artemis' brain working. Who knows what he could extort from this situation?

R and R please!


	2. The Chess Board Is Revealed

Disclaimer: The usual. And don't forget Eoin Colfer, the god who owns the Artemis Fowl series.

Note to the reviewers, namely **sNOw**, **shadow**,** InvaderXelith **and **Mop Head and her Daemon**: Thank you for the positive reviews! 

A Shard's Worth of a Mirror Image 

Chapter Two: The Chess Board is Revealed

It already had been two days and even Madame Pomfrey, famous for keeping in students a bit longer than necessary for bedrest (handy for escapists who just wanted a break from Professor Snape's wrath), even grudgingly released Artemis Fowl from the Infirmary. 

It had been a heated matter for debates whether he should be allowed to roam around Hogwarts but the staff finally relented to see Hogwarts as it is. It was difficult enough to hide the fact that the place was magic for a day, let alone for a possible year.

On his way out of the Hospital Wing and towards the Headmaster's Office, Artemis could not help but marvel at the scenery, one which rushed up to Artemis himself the moment he opened the door connecting the Hospital Wing to the Hallways of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Clad in his Saint Bartleby's School for Young Gentlemen uniform which has been restored and cleaned ("Not as clean as _faerie_-clean, though," said Artemis to himself), he padded along the Hallways looking like a Hogwarts student lacking uniform robes. In fact, Filch accosted him for this very reason.

"You! Boy! What are you doing without robes?" Filch spat the moment he caught sight of Artemis walking through the Charms corridor. Dragging his mop along with him as he approached Artemis, he looked like the Devil's lackey indeed. The Devil being Professor Snape, as Artemis would later find out.

Finding his unease behind his black expression, he at once broke into a vampiric smile, one which sent shivers down Filch's veteran spine, which is no mean feat. "Hello, sir," he said with dripping courteousness, "I was wondering where the Headmaster's office is. Would you care to show me?"

"Harrrumph," Filch huffed, an indignant look on his face. Who was this boy trying to trick? Everybody in Hogwarts knew that there were no visitors at this particular season, which is already approaching winter. Besides, he could somehow place the boy's face…he knew he had seen him before, but could somehow not jog it out of the deep recesses of his brain. "You trying to trick me, boy? Eh?"

"No," Artemis said simply, smile replaced by a somber expression. He could not comprehend how a human being could be _that_ narrow-minded. Surely that is a trait of one who is furiously dedicated to one's profession, and that this particular person he is facing right now had suspending and giving out detentions to students as his passionate mission in life.

"You want the Headmaster's Office, I'll get you the Headmaster's office," Filch muttered, quickly dragging Artemis by the arm. He continued on his half-hearted tirade, as there were more things to do. "Damn students, now they're not wearing uniforms, what's the world coming to, eh? Damn, blasted…"

Artemis sighed. Surely there was no end to the surprises. Well, at least, he would be in the Headmaster's office in no time, being dragged by the school janitor like he did his mop.

He passed by students who in turn looked at him as if he was about to be given the death sentence. They wore blazers, all right, but over the blazers they had wizard's long robes and scarves of four different color combinations. There were students with red and orange scarves, some with deep and pale green, students with yellow and black, and yet more others with scarves of royal and pastel blue combinations. There was one main similarity among these students: that they were looking at Artemis like he was doing to be put down anytime soon. But somehow, some of those of the deep and pale green scarves were somehow…grinning at his predicament. 

Artemis only tried to keep his being dragged look a bit more dignified. But the stairs, which they took downwards the inner bowels of the castle, were threatening to trip him, so he gently tried to pull his arm away from the offending janitor. "Let me go," said Artemis, whose patience was beginning to fray. 

"And get away? Hah!" Filch cackled, a sound which Artemis found extremely distasteful.

"I am going to the Headmaster's office anyway, _sir_," Artemis coolly said, regarding Filch with the slightest contempt. He put a note in his mind to let Butler _adjust_ this particular man once he returns…

Artemis winced. Of course, there is a remote chance that Butler would not come back.

"There," Filch stopped by the hardwood door in the midst of the dungeons, just by the stairs. "We're by the office." Artemis could not miss the malice in the almost-demented man's voice.

"Finally," Artemis could not stop himself from saying it, but Filch _still_ would not let go of his now-aching arm. _And to think I was confined for a couple of days just to get this healed_. 

Filch rapped on the door. "Professor Snape!"

Slowly, the door creaked open, revealing one very exhausted man clad in black wizard's robes and with circles under his eyes. "What, Filch?" Then he saw the boy Filch was holding by the arm.

Just as Filch was going to tell him of his latest 'catch', Snape dismissed whatever he had to say with a wave of his hand and said, "Filch, that boy you are manhandling in not a Hogwarts student."

"What?" spluttered Filch. "But—aren't there…"

Snape rubbed his temples, a sign that he was unduly exasperated, yet, remarkably, trying to hold it in since he saw Filch as an invaluable partner in the pursuit of errant students. "This is a special case, Filch, now, if you please…"

Filch reluctantly let go of his quarry. "Very well, if you say so, Professor,"

"Thank you, Filch," Severus sent the janitor on his way, and once out of sight and earshot, he turned his attention to the boy in alien uniforms. "How are you feeling, Artemis Fowl?"

"Fine, sir," Artemis curtly replied. _I recognize that voice somewhere…_

"Well, since you are here anyway, come in." Severus stepped aside to let the boy in. As he watched Artemis Fowl approach the fireplace, he could not help but admit one thing:

_Well, he certainly looks like me,_ Snape thought, _except for the blue eyes._

"Sit down," Snape motioned towards a comfortable chair by the fireplace. Artemis complied without any words, still trying to place where he heard the man's voice before.

"I am Severus Snape, Potions master here in Hogwarts, and I would want to know what business you had in the Forbidden Forest the day you were accosted by the Death Eaters," Snape said, driving home to the point. He remained standing, his elbow propped on the mantle above the fireplace, Artemis sitting just across him. It was a typical interrogation position, albeit this one was undoubtedly very informal when it came to Snape. The small voice in his head told him though that there is little chance that the boy would reveal his botched itinerary.

Silence.

"I was going to…conduct business with the Goblins until your group decided to have a little…fun, sir." Artemis finally broke the silence.

Snape hid his barely suppressed shock beneath hooded eyes. "My group?"

"You have the right to remain silent," Artemis murmured, half-mocking, half-thoughtful. Of course the man would not admit it, but he is positive that he is one of them. Artemis looked down towards his newly-polished shoes, thinking for the right course of action. But there was no room for thought, really.

"I do not know how you came to that conclusion, but yes, you are right," Snape answered, knowing full well that denial would only worsen the situation. "But you should throw accusations _after_ you have pieced together the facts, boy. A person of your intelligence should know that."

_Did he just give me permission to investigate? Interesting,_ Artemis thought. 

"You are welcome to stay here, Fowl, until you recover your companions. Yes, them," Snape said as he noticed Artemis' eyes flicker with silent hope. "I searched for your male friend, but he was nowhere to be found. He probably escaped somewhere."

Artemis did not know what to make of the present situation. Here was a man clearly guilty of being one of those men who abducted Juliet, but this one spoke no denial and even hinted that he tried to rescue them. _He is in one very compromising situation_, Artemis observed. Not that he often found himself in several compromising situations himself. 

"You should go to the Headmaster for more information you would need in your stay here," Snape abruptly said, straightening himself up. He could not milk out more information from the boy, since Artemis knew all along that Snape was one of the Death Eaters. But, at least, he knew now what his purpose was. A deal with the Goblins. At least that was a start.

Snape started to dismiss him, but then thought the better of it and just escorted Artemis out the door.

In the inner bowels of his mind he somehow felt that this particular boy would haunt him for the next days, months, or even a year, if Artemis Fowl would not leave Hogwarts as soon as possible.

_Is it me, or is my past rushing back to me?_

Artemis stood in front of the stone gargoyle one of the students pointed out to him and, with great unease, spoke out the password given him.

"Jellyworms."

Like magic, the stone gargoyle stepped back and let Artemis go through the guarded threshold. Inside were numerous contraptions some of which Artemis recognized as models of prototypes of machines made in the Medieval and Renaissance ages. At the far corner was a bird with resplendent gold plumage resting in an open cage. Artemis walked towards the bird and reached a tentative hand towards it, and he was rewarded with a beautiful-sounding cooing of the bird as he gently ran his palm over its body. Artemis felt as if he could go on patting the strange bird forever and listening to it's beautiful cooing, when he heard footsteps behind him.

Artemis turned around, and he saw a noble-looking old man with the longest beard Artemis had ever seen in splendid blue velvet robes, accompanied by a young man with shabby brown robes but with, Artemis was surprised to note, amber eyes that he could swear on the spot that they could glow in the dark. That feature alone compensated for the scruffiness of the man's clothing.

"Hello, Artemis Fowl," the Headmaster reached a hand towards him which Artemis accepted graciously. "I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster here at Hogwarts, and this is," he gestured to the genial man beside him, "is Remus Lupin, resident Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor."

Artemis shook the professor's hand. "Nice to meet you."

"Well, let's go to the matter at hand," Dumbledore said, walking towards his place behind his large mahogany desk and sat down. Lupin motioned for Artemis to follow suit and sit in one of the chairs in front of the desk. "A lemon drop?"

Artemis politely refused. Remus, on the other hand, took one and sucked contentedly on the candy. He had such a sweet tooth for a werewolf.

"As you could see, this is Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," Dumbledore started. "I hope you didn't find the fact that wizards are in fact, real, too shocking."

Artemis shook his head. "No, since I have already consorted with the Lower Elements in the past. But what I find surprising is that this…subculture is decidedly separated from scientific technology. Even the faeries had their technology superior to the human's."

"Yes, but I think our magic compensates for everything." Lupin commented.

Dumbledore smiled at that and regarded Artemis as if he was one of his favorite students. Actually, he felt as if he was looking at Severus' younger version again. In a twisted sense of déjà vu, he somehow felt compelled to right the wrongs he had done to Severus in his youth, and Artemis would be the means to that possible end. He was so much like him.

"I think you should masquerade as one of the staff's relatives," Dumbledore said. "It is going to be difficult, of course, since you are non-magical but it would have to do especially since we do not want the Death Eaters knowing your true identity. I think…I know to whom you should be _supposedly_ related," said Dumbledore with a twinkle in his eyes. If Artemis didn't know better, he would have sworn that that light was mischievous. Even Lupin looked the same, and that effect with the amber wolf's eyes was decidedly _scary_.

"You look like his spitting image," Remus Lupin chuckled. "Except for the blue eyes, of course."

"So, is this arrangement all right for you?" Dumbledore asked the boy whose hands were carefully folded on his lap, and who was obviously reviewing the available options in his head. 

Artemis nodded mutely. He had kidnapped a Faerie captain, had a hand in suppressing the Goblin insurgence, and then he was going undercover in a school full of wizards on his way to recover his stolen gold? Such a full life he was living. 

"Yes," he agreed, "It should suffice."

He was going to say something in relation to the goblins, but was interrupted by a loud explosion from the outside. The shabby professor shot up and darted through the door, shouting "I'll go check, Albus!"

_What is happening?_ Artemis thought as he gripped the armchairs, thoughts of the night he was separated from Juliet and Butler rushing back to him. 

"ALBUS!" Minerva McGonagall's voice resonated from outside. "An attack! The Death Eaters!"

Harry Potter, fifteen years old and a member of the House of Gryffindor gripped his ward, holding it in the same position as he would it in a Duel, with Ron Weasley and Blaise Zabini at his back. They were surrounded by Death Eaters, their faces obviously grinning menacingly despite the white masks covering them.

"Damn it, could we do anything else?" muttered Blaise, whose wand arm was shot by one of the Death Eaters and made it shake slightly. But no matter. What was more important was that his back was supported by two other, even though they may be Gryffindors.

"I could try an Unforgivable," Harry muttered back darkly. "But Dumbledore will have my head."

"Better for him to have your head than them," Ron retorted. "Try!"

Harry shook his head. No. Not even in these circumstances, because he had something else in his mind. The Severing Charm. 

"DIFFINDO!" Harry shouted, a purple flash shot out of his wand and hit one of them by the throat. Hard. Blood spurted out of the artery that was hit, and the masked man fell down. Possibly dead, but Harry had no time to ponder it. The Boy Who Lived was trying to Survive. 

Ron followed suit, but his Charms were comparably weak to Harry's so he resorted to the proverbial _Petrificus Totalis_, but that was easily shielded away by the Death Eaters.

"Oh, fuck," Blaise whispered with the sharpest edge he could muster. If they could shield magic, very well then. He was going to do things the dirty way. Tranfiguring his wand into a sharp five-foot long platinum blade, _The best_, thought Blaise with morbid pride, he charged at the stupidly complacent Death Eaters and hacked away, guts and blood sprayed onto his bloodthirsty robes. _Hah, they could not defend themselves against a sword with their wands. Pathetic._

"We don't have playing with them!" Barked one of the masked men. "Find the boy. Now!"

Harry, as busy as he was casting Severing Charms and aiming them at Death Eater necks, still could not miss that particular sentence. _They're looking for a boy…who isn't me? What is Voldemort up to?_

From behind a suit of armor, Artemis watched the whole spectacle. He fondled his watch, whose bezel is hollowed out and embedded with a 20-foot radius wide charge of the Blue Rinse, the biological bomb he filched from his past jaunts in the Undergrounds. Captain Holly Short would kill him, not to mention Commander Root, for unauthorized use of a high-level bomb, but he couldn't help it. The situation unfolding in front of him was just proof that there are _legitimate_ reasons to use the bomb. In his case, of course. 

The Blue Rinse was called such because of the blue color it emanates. The beauty of this contraption was such that it kills all of the life forms within its radius of effect, but leaves the surrounding environment untouched. A cleansing agent.

A dangerous beauty, but Artemis decided that now could be the time to put the bomb to use. He would have to lure one of them out, of course, for interrogation purposes. And there was the matter of getting Harry and the other two out of the scene, or they would be Blue Rinsed as well.

_Very well then. _Pulling himself out of his hiding place, he first tried to catch Harry's eye and motioned for him to get out, along with the two others, at the count of three.

He raised a closed fist, then opened his index finger. _One_.

The middle finger. _Two_.

Finally the ring finger. _Three._

Harry suddenly pulled at his companions' sleeves and shouted, "GET! GET OUT OF THE WAY! QUICK!" though he himself even had no idea what to expect from Artemis Fowl. They ran away as far as they could, but the dazed and not to mention wounded Death Eaters were at a loss of what was happening.

Taking their momentary confusion into his advantage, he pushed the blue button of his watch-bomb and turned it clockwise, them threw it towards the Death Eaters.

"Eat that," breathed Artemis, then bit his lip. Using clichés was very, very unlike him.

After a few seconds the watch dissipated and in its place a blue orb formed, then expanded to approximately 20-feet radius, effectively closing in on all the Death Eaters, but one. That one was the Death Eater Harry had rendered almost lifeless, but Artemis assessed that he probably still is alive judging by the shallow breaths. "That's for Juliet."

_I am in big trouble, perhaps…_ Artemis knew that a Blue Rinse activation would be sensed by the LEPrecon controls center and would be traced here. Artemis could expect company from the Lower Elements anytime soon, possibly Captain Holly Short, but that was part of the plan.

_Good plans come out of the air,_ Artemis mused. 

From behind him, a hand patted him on his back, and Artemis instinctively turned around, about to punch whomever it was who snuck up on him, but the man caught his flying fist before it connected with his face.

Severus Snape held Artemis' closed fist and put it down, gently.

"I think a Sorting Ceremony is in order," he said, face grave. 

Artemis could tell he did not like it one bit, but, as all circumstances go, had to.

Read and review, please!


	3. Velvet Covering

Disclaimer: The usual. I give all to JKR and Eoin Colfer except for my plot which is mine, mine!

Notes: **Mop Head**: I could only imagine Remus having the same eye color as a wolf's…

**Invader**: Thanks! I just finished reading the two Artemis books just last Friday and I couldn't help but obsess about them. This is my outlet of sorts ^__^

A Shard's Worth of a Mirror Image 

Chapter Three: Velvet Covering

"What do you mean about a Sorting Ceremony?" Artemis asked. He had to keep his mind, and thus his options, always open. Despite the ongoing pandemonium of the present situation, with several Death Eaters effectively 'cleansed' off the face of Hogwarts, and not to mention the few witnesses' gaping mouths that his spectacle had elicited, he took pains to ask one little question, what is a Sorting Ceremony?

He had barely finished speaking when Severus pulled Artemis away from the scene and led him to a more secluded area, which he found in one of the deserted classrooms. Closing the door after him, Snape muttered the Silencing Charm.

"What the hell did you do, Fowl?" Snape spat at Artemis, who was suitably shocked (but his startled state was concealed, of course) since he had shown extreme self-control the moment he woke up at Hogwarts. And then again, this was the same man who was one of the Death-Eaters.

"I Blue Rinsed them." Artemis answered wryly. "A simple but high level weapon I stole from Faerie Technology."

"Right," Snape drawled, "that just about explains everything, does it, Artemis Fowl? Did you just realize what you have done?"

Artemis took a few seconds before answering. The man had a point, but he was not helping, not with his extremely offensive stance he bore over Artemis, his tall frame leaning towards him like a snake going in for the kill. Artemis' reason for doing so was that he saw that Harry's group was outnumbered three to eleven, and he would not want to see a replay of sorts of what happened _that night_. The reason was emotional, even by Artemis' own cold standards, but the recent events were enough to thaw him a little. Even the coldest, most determined man.

"I just saved Harry and two other students. Or is there anything else I should know about?" said Artemis testily. A small warning shot through his brain, telling him that somehow there was something that was missing, something that would complete the whole picture. But that piece would only let itself show in the later part of this particular event in Artemis' life, in which he would ultimately save his life and that of Captain Holly Short's.

Snape let himself calm a little. _Of course, the boy doesn't know about Voldemort._ Taking a deep breath, he sat on one of the dusty chairs and motioned Artemis to sit on one of the chairs across him. "Do you know about the Death Eaters?"

"No, not beyond what I saw that night," said Artemis.

"Let me just tell you that this particular group is hell bent on exterminating half-blood wizards. Wizards with non-magical mixed in theirs," said Snape in a level voice as if he was lecturing in his class. "The leader, named Voldemort, is supposedly descended from one of the greatest wizards, Salazar Slytherin."

Artemis nodded, digesting every bit of information the man had to offer.

"I do not know if you could grasp this, but recently Voldemort had acquired one of our professors to join his ranks." Snape took time to snort at the next bit of information. "Fortunately, he got one of our most ineffective teachers, and that is our Divination professor, Trelawney."

Artemis raised a hand to cut in, ever the well-mannered boy that he was. "Excuse me, but if the Divination that you're speaking of means the power of prediction, why do you refer to that professor as ineffective?" Artemis raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that supposed to make one powerful?"

"For the sole reason that almost all of her predictions did not come true." Snape dead-panned. "I would have given Voldemort her anytime, and make him believe in her predictions. If this trend goes on, then we would be eventually seeing the Dark Lord's demise."

"I have to confess that I failed to notice the immediate conflict here, Professor Snape." Artemis said somberly. He hated it when he was clueless. But who could blame him? The Wizarding World was so backward when it came to technology; there were no files about them. Of course, the reason for that was mainly because the wizards would want to have nothing to do with the non-magical folk. 

"Trelawney apparently told Voldemort that the _true_ Heir of Slytherin, who is supposedly much more powerful than he is, would reveal himself now, or anytime soon," Snape answered. "And he was told that the Heir was to be found inside Hogwarts. Those whom you Blue-Rinsed were just decoys. They were meant to ferret out the supposedly _true_ Heir of Slytherin."

"And I just…wiped them out," said Artemis weakly. "Now they would think of me as the powerful Heir…"

"Not to mention that most of us don't know about the Blue-Rinse," Snape went on gravely. "That flash of light that vaporized them could be easily mistaken as a new, powerful form of magic."

"Are there many witnesses?" asked Artemis tentatively. He knew he would not like the answer to that particular question.

"Half the school knows by now, Fowl."

"So now I have to push on with the disguise as your son as soon as possible." Artemis said, his mind groping for more possible paths. But none turned up, especially since he could not leave the premises, not with extremely magical wizards hunting him down for his non-existent magic.

Apparently, Snape wasn't told of this particular bit of plan. "WHAT?" he bellowed. "Who told you this?"

"The Headmaster. And another professor."

"Look, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I do not fit into the father-figure mold," said Snape. "Not to mention that if the student body found out, it would just serve as a…distraction. Also, it would compromise my position in the Death Eaters…" Snape trailed off.

"I think your position was already compromised enough," Artemis countered, but not in defense of Dumbledore and Lupin's plan. He was merely stating the facts. "I'm sorry, but if Voldemort would not be convinced of my supposed relation with you soon enough, then his searching would inevitably lead to my parents and it would endanger them both."

"Hogwarts was already endangered when you stumbled into the Forbidden Forest," muttered Snape. "I could not spy anymore under these conditions. Do you realize how much you've cost this school?"

The remark stung, but not in a way that offended Artemis. Artemis believed that it was _not_ his fault that he encountered the Death Eaters, and that fact somehow washed his hands of the situation. More important things lay ahead, of course, and that was saving Juliet and recovering Butler. _All things would come in its time,_ Artemis told himself. _This is all part of the plan…_

But when revelations keep popping out of nowhere, would Artemis still be able to lead the flow of events to his advantage?

He doubted himself the second time. In his life.

He fervently prayed that Captain Holly Short would detect the activation of the Blue Rinse and trace it immediately. God knew he needed a lot of help.

Artemis realized after his private conference with Severus Snape that his question about the Sorting Ceremony was not answered. But at this very moment, when he was sitting on a stool in the Great Hall in front of the whole student body, he knew that he was to find out about it himself.

"Artemis Snape," called out Minerva McGonagall for formalities' sake and put and extremely tattered wizard's pointed hat over his head. The pitch-black velvet fabric of the hat engulfed Artemis' vision.

'Well, hello there,' said the voice in the hat.

_So, is this the Sorting Ceremony?_ Artemis asked the voice.

'You're a no-brainer. You have slivers of Gryffindor courage but you clearly belong in…'

The hat bellowed out for the whole Great Hall to hear its verdict. "SLYTHERIN!"

The students of the red and orange scarves were muttering "I'm not surprised," and "God, another greaseball," and more of the sorts, but Harry, the first student whom he met and also one of those who knew his true identity gave him a thumbs-up. Apparently he agreed with the Sorting Hat's choice.

The occupants of the table situated by the far right hooted and stamped their feet. Artemis walked over to them, claiming a seat between on named Draco Malfoy and one of the students whom he spared a possible torture session, Blaise Zabini. After a while, he decided that he did not like Malfoy at all, since he spouted too many empty, heated words and kept on hinting that if Artemis would beat Voldemort, he should be his lieutenant.

Artemis' mind just drifted, almost effectively cutting the irritating Malfoy boy and the rest from his world. He was thinking of how to convince the other students that he was magical when he wasn't. How could he even attend classes? Not attending classes would be a good alternative, but that would entail even more complications. 

He was to find out that Headmaster Dumbledore had straightened it out already for him. As soon as the commotion in the Great Hall had subsided, he tapped the side of his glass with his fork. "I am glad that Artemis Snape had decided to join Hogwarts for this year," began Dumbledore. "but since he had cast one of the most prohibited spells that even the Ministry of Magic had decreed if forbidden to utter its name, in spite of the service he had done for the school by successfully eliminating part of the Death Eaters," at this moment Dumbledore raised a wand, supposedly owned by Artemis, for the whole campus body to see, "his wand would be temporarily confiscated, but he would still be able to attend classes."

A loud murmuring was heard all across the Great Hall, and Artemis thought it unbecoming for the Headmaster to announce it to all of the students, and in dinner time at that. _But that takes care of everything,_ thought Artemis smugly.

Double Potions class. The only class Artemis could actively participate in, besides Care of Magical Creatures. He was intently listening to Professor Snape's lecture when a polite tap on his shoulder called his attention.

"Yes?" Artemis murmured almost lazily, his eyes looking sideways at Montague, his partner. 

"Is Snape a…er, good father?" Montague whispered.

Artemis cocked an eyebrow at the question. "Well, he is adequate, to say the least." He then chose that moment to grind beetle wings to make him look as if he was instructing Montague on the proper way of doing so. "Why do you ask?" Artemis could feel somehow that Snape had his eyes on him, but decided that causing a small tension between them would make their recent discovery of their 'relation' much more believable. No student would discover that he is, in fact, Snape's son and quickly adjust. Not with the occasional temper quirks that the man possessed.

"LONGBOTTOM!" Snape bellowed, his patience blown out. _Point taken,_ thought Artemis and motioned for Montague to shut up. The poor Gryffindor boy had melted his cauldron yet again, and its contents were spilled onto Harry. Artemis could not help but feel sorry for them both.

"Twenty points from Gryffindor for your incompetence!" spat Snape. "When will you ever learn? When you get expelled?"

Neville Longbottom looked as if he was about to be murdered. Harry, on the other hand, positively looked green. Not because he was intimidated, but because there was something that was causing him a lot of discomfort. The potion had caused Harry to develop many pink boils sprouting all over his skin.

"Ah…" Harry moaned, a hand rising to touch his forehead.

"Potter, you very well know that if you are injured, you should go to the hospital wing!" Snape lashed out. "Now, go! I don't have—"

Harry waved him off. "No…" He turned to Artemis' direction. "Voldemort's looking for you…the girl…" Then he passed out, his body supported by Ron Weasley. 

Artemis paled.

_Juliet…_

Read and review, please! Constructive criticism is also welcome!


	4. Mirror Image

Disclaimer: See previous chapters.

Notes: **InvaderXelith**: Oops! I forgot about that. Oh well, but I'll fix that if ever that gets mentioned in the later chapters. Thanks!

**sNOw**: It because Voldemort never knew Trelawney anyway, and he just wants to have a divination 'expert' in his team. Too bad he chose Trelawney!

A Shard's Worth of a Mirror Image 

Chapter Four: Mirror Image

Snape blanched. This was the first time Voldemort and the Death Eaters had a development in their plans without him present. Unconsciously running a hand over his forearm where his Dark Mark was, he half-expected it to burn, but the painful sensation never came. Voldemort wasn't calling him, and this was serious.

Knowing full well that Potter did not need the Infirmary in this kind of headache, he pried off Weasley's arms from Harry and half-carried him towards the Headmaster's office, an arm supporting Harry. Hermione, Ron, and the select few who knew what Harry's headache meant kept mum about Snape's sudden uncalled-for concern towards Potter. The Slytherins and the rest of the class were quite open-mouthed with the whole spectacle. Who would have thought Snape would even half-carry Potter to the Infirmary? (They did not know they were going to the Headmaster's office)

All except Artemis Fowl. Before Snape and Harry, still woozy with pain, could even go through the classroom's main door, he ran after them to follow. 

Snape was already aggravated enough as it is, so he opened his mouth to spit out a retort when Artemis waved him off with impatient words of his own.

"This concerns me, Professor Snape. Father. I believe I would be of some help."

"Your help isn't needed, boy, you should get your nose in more juvenile, more _fitting_, endeavors instead," Snape said slowly, as if talking to a five-year-old boy, but no one in the room could miss the syrupy sarcasm in his voice. "Or should I just keep you from attending your classes, _son_? In other words, _lay off_."

That particular remark stung Artemis more than any other insult Snape would hurl at him for the rest of his stay at Hogwarts. Nobody told Artemis Fowl to lay off from matters, but rather, people who knew him well would practically beg for his attention and accurate advice. 

Nobody, _nobody_ told Artemis Fowl to _lay off_. 

The whole class watched Artemis carefully for any sign of his reaction. 

They would be sorely disappointed.

Artemis merely shrugged and looked at Snape straight in the eye. "Very well then, you have my word, Father," Artemis said, emphasizing the truth in his words. "I will go for more…juvenile matters."

With that said, he turned his back on his 'father' and walked back to his table and his unfinished potion, in classic Snape billowing-robe style. But not before he held his father's gaze with his steely own. Artemis might have only imagined it, but he thought he saw disappointment in Snape's eyes, but was quickly replaced by something else and then the teacher left the classroom, with the still-disoriented Harry.

Time was running out. Artemis picked up a quill from his desk and chewed on its end unconsciously. The cogs in his brain were working non-stop now. He could not afford to be lax in these moments. Not when time was of the essence, with Juliet's and possibly Artemis' life in the balance. And of course, there is also the matter of recovering his faerie gold from the goblins, but that could wait.

Artemis decided that a visit to the library was in order.

"This is bad, Albus," Snape said, wringing his hands. If one were to see him doing so, the reaction could be one of these two: first could be of humor, since it was not every day that you would see the potions master act with so little self-control, and really looked pathetic doing so. But second, and the more possible reaction if the one who caught Snape acting in such a matter realized the full weight of the situation, would be that he would be packing his bags for muggle Alaska immediately. "If Voldemort suspects me, then we would be paralyzed. We could not charge blindly, and you know that."

Albus nodded. The Death Eater that Artemis left out of the Blue Rinse whom they had subjected to Veritaserum indeed confessed that Snape was already on shaky ground in relation to his standing with Voldemort. Pity the man, Macnair, was just a lackey and was not a confidant of Voldemort's more essential plans. But then, if you were wise, you wouldn't be sending your most trusted confidant into enemy territory, not when they have Veritaserum on hand.

"Does your scar still hurt Harry?" Albus turned to Harry, who was seated opposite Snape in front of Dumbledore's desk. Harry nodded, but he replied, "Yeah, a bit, but I could recall what was in the vision, though."

"Do tell," said Snape, intent of hearing every information that he could milk at the moment.

"Well, Voldemort and many Death Eaters were together, discussing something in some sort of a cemetery…" Harry shuddered, remembering what happened in his last year. "…and he, Voldemort, told them to _recover_ the 'rumored real' heir. I'm sure he meant Artemis."

"Recover?" repeated Snape. "What did he mean, recover? Unless…"

"Unless that he had been consorting with Voldemort as well in the past, was that what you are trying to say, Severus?" Albus asked the agitated man. 

"Yes."

"You have nothing to worry about in that regard, Severus," Albus said reassuringly. "Because I have had my own doubts myself, and also did _precautions_ to appease them."

Severus and Harry knew better than to question Albus on how he carried out his precautions.

"Is there anything else you saw, Harry?"

Harry nodded. He was starting to get used in these situations, like being a voyeur every time Voldemort made a development, and grisly developments they were, was as common as taking breakfast. "A girl about my age was…tied to a tombstone. She didn't look good, if you know what I mean."

Snape, for the second time, paled. The Boy Who Lived, seeing a girl being raped and he was telling it to someone else as if it were just a minute detail? Where was the world coming to?

"And nothing else, Professor Dumbledore."

"What are your plans, Headmaster?" Snape asked. "Anything I could do?"

"You should stay here, Severus. Judging by the current situation, you're in danger. You'll be safe here," said Dumbledore, finality in his tone.

"But the students!" Snape started, his unwillingness to relinquish his usefulness evident.

"I know, Severus. But there is something at work which we do not know," said Dumbledore austerely, "and it would be wise if we were to wait."

That evening Snape had his Dark Mark burning, and beyond all reason other than his own, stepped out into the night that was threatening to claim him. Dumbledore was innately furious at his long-time charge, but there was nothing to be done. Severus was Severus.

On his way out the Library, Artemis found Harry waiting for him in the stairs leading to the dungeons. He looked sick with worry.

"What happened?" Artemis asked, butterflies in his stomach. _This is going too fast,_ he thought. But then, Artemis was now armed with a plan. It is just that he found the Wizarding World sorely lacking of subtlety. _Things happen when you expect it to_.

"Professor Snape went into the Forbidden Forest," Harry said, a hand running through his hair. "He's…"

Artemis knew better than to push Harry, but things were extremely urgent. "He's…?"

"He's going to _die_!" Harry cried. "I just had a vision that Voldemort was going to cast to Snape the Avada Kedavra curse the moment he meets up with them. He's going to die and there's nothing I could do about it!"

Artemis thought for a moment. If he were to carry out his plan tonight, Professor Snape's life would be saved. Possibly even Juliet's. But this one was merely of diversion, and it was supposed to be used in conjunction of another, greater, plan, but that one was useless if his other comrades were not there to back him up.

Artemis decided to do it as soon as possible. "Harry, I was wondering if there was some way that we could track Voldemort."

Harry's eyes lit up with hope. Evidently Artemis had a plan, and that it was possible that lives were going to be saved. "Y-yes. I have the Marauder's Map, it was originally an animated blueprint of Hogwarts only, but if I put a drop of an Enhancement solution, it would cover almost an eighth of Wizarding Britain."

Artemis cocked an eyebrow. "If that's so, then why didn't the folks here trace Voldemort then and there, if all you could do was to use that map?"

Harry shook his head. "Many reasons for that. First, Hermione only discovered the Enhancement solution only recently, and second, even if we could spot Voldemort, how could we beat him? I mean…"

Artemis cut in. "Hermione?"

"She's my best friend besides Ron. She's the best students Hogwarts had in years, and she could brew potions perfectly."

_Just whom I needed._ "Could she spare some time to make a potion at my request?" Artemis asked with all sincerity.

Hermione wiped a drop of sweat running on her forehead with her sleeve. She, Artemis, Harry, Ron and even Blaise were putting on a tension-filled vigil while waiting for the potion to be finished in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

"Here, use this," Artemis handed Hermione his handkerchief, which was gratefully accepted. "How long would the effect last?" asked Artemis.

"Usually, only an hour, like Polyjuice Potion," said Hermione. "But if I add a drop of the Enhancement Solution, the effect will last up to five hours." Hermione was evidently proud of her achievements. Artemis decided then and there that the girl could use some lessons in subtlety, but then, she was a Gryffindor. In Artemis' three weeks of stay in Hogwarts, he found out about the Four Houses and their attributes. Next to Hufflepuff, he disliked Gryffindor best.

Blaise shook his head, smiling. His hazel eyes were glowing with mischief. "Fred and George should have gotten you to do this potion for them, Hermione," he said. Blaise, one who formerly disliked the Gryffindor Triad, became close to them after it was revealed to him that most Slytherins did not support the ideals of a true Slytherin. They only believed in Voldemort, and he decided that he was not going to be a part of his demented design. That decision was driven home with the fact that the other Slytherins ostracized him and his parents when they found out that the Zabinis did not support Voldemort's ideals. Five months ago Blaise punched Malfoy in the face and declared to all Hogwarts that if there ever was a true Slytherin, that particular Slytherin was dead and turning in his grave. 

For Blaise, a true Slytherin based his worth on cunning, and with genetic make-up. That was absurd. Malfoy was a classic example of a pseudo-Slytherin, and so was Voldemort.

"I won't you guys bring me along?" Ron whined to Harry and Artemis. "I would be useful, not to mention I know some hexes…"

"Oh, shut your trap Ron," Blaise rolled his eyes. "We're only good for fighting, not thinking."

Artemis wanted to agree, but he knew that the remark was self-deprecating and verbal agreement would come close to an insult. "The task is more covert-oriented, and detection would be detrimental to the cause," he said instead.

"Er, translate to English please, Snape," said Ron.

"I think what he meant was that the moment Voldemort sees us, we're toast." Harry said.

"Right-o," Blaise chimed in. "I also want to go with you guys, but I'll just wish you luck instead."

Harry nodded. Artemis had just told them about his plan, and he knew that he needed lots of them.

Moments later Hermione announced that the potion was ready. Handing Harry and Artemis two stoppered flasks, she along with Ron and Blaise escorted them to one of the secret passages that led to the Forbidden Forest. 

Harry put on the Invisibility Cloak around him and Artemis as soon as they reached the fission in the west-side wall in the Great Hall hidden behind a suit of armor. Before they parted ways, Hermione saw it fit to give each of the two heroes (one dubious, if you ask me) a peck on the cheek. Harry blushed furiously, Artemis was slightly thrown off-balance, and Ron just looked furious.

When Harry and Artemis went in the secret passage, they could hear Ron saying "What was THAT for?!"

Severus Snape, Potions master at Hogwarts, found himself having the back of his head pushed deep into the mud as soon as he Apparated next to the Dark Lord.

"Eat dust, as mudbloods say," hissed Voldemort in his most menacing voice. "Nobody betrays me and live."

The other Death Eaters laughed. The scene looked as if they were some sort of a midnight cult, with their somber black cloaks and white masks and with them congregating in the middle of a deserted cemetery. With Severus Snape as their blood sacrifice.

"A pity you do not favor wand magic, my pet," Voldemort said, slowly suffocating Severus in the mud. "How would your Potions save you, hm?"

No response from Severus. Juliet, the girl they had abducted and saw fit to use as a bait to lure out the Slytherin 'heir', squeezed her eyes shut, fresh tears spilling from her eyes. "P-please," she sobbed. "No more!"

Voldemort smiled evilly at her. "You should open your eyes to what the world really is, whore."

Juliet bit back a retort, her eyes evidence to her brewing fury. Voldemort looked down once again to the manacled figure beneath him. "You know, Severus, I planned on using the Killing curse on you, but I decided that the mudblood way would be more suitable."

Voldemort was about to stomp his foot hard on Severus' nape to break his spine, but he was distracted by the two visitors who appeared out of nowhere, standing on one of the elevated mausoleums, looking down on Voldemort and the Death Eaters.

Peter Pettigrew, one of Voldemort's lackeys, stifled an errant, cowardly gasp. Standing on the roof of the white washed mausoleum were James Potter, and a man who looked eerily like Severus Snape, only more handsome with his vampiric blue-eyed smile. 

James held his wand while the other held a rapier, charmed so that it would have burn with white flame.

"I believe this would be the first of the many times we would take back what you have stolen from us, _Tom Riddle_," James said, raising his wand arm.

Like Peter Pettigrew was haunted by the vision of James, solid and real, in front of him, Voldemort likewise shared the same experience. But not with James, rather of the other man with the flaming blade.

Voldemort started to exclaim the name of the other man, but was cut short when Severus Snape chose that very moment to catch him unawares. He only succeeded to mutter the first two letters of the man's name.

"Gr—"

Read and review, please! Constructive crit welcome


	5. Deep Surface

A Shard's Worth of a Mirror Image 

Chapter Five: Deep Surface

Artemis, or rather a twenty-something version of Artemis cocked an eyebrow at Voldemort's mention of two consecutive consonants. "Gr?" taunted Artemis. In over two years Artemis saw it fit to let himself a good go at humor once in a while. Especially when in a dangerous situation. "Maybe you mean 'grrr', as in an expression of utter frustration." His vampire smile turned into a sneer as soon as Severus, in a fit of adrenaline rush, toppled the Dark Lord over, giving _him_ a taste of the mud himself.

He gripped his blade with the billowing flames, an idea of Blaise, tightly, the warm, hard hilt of the sword felt good, giving him inexplicable confidence in himself. Beside him, Harry was getting ready to cast hexes himself, positioning himself to the standard Dueling stance. The cold wind played with the two boys'—or rather for this moment, men—cloaks akin to the classic fashionably just-in-time entrance of comic book heroes. Artemis decided that it felt good, especially when it's beyond make-believe. 

Artemis flexed the fingers in his free hand and threw his temporarily grown-up body down to the filthy tableau below, his robes spread out like wings of a bat. Excited with the promise of an 'interesting' fight, his pale face was flushed and his eyes glittered dangerously. 

Landing on the ground a few meters away from Voldemort, he charged at the still-stunned Death Eaters and lunged at them with his blade just like Butler and Juliet had taught him recently. Two, then three, six, then eleven Death Eaters were physically incapacitated, either with gaping wounds or burning flesh, after the two men's surprise attack. Not surprisingly, some were successful in casting spells at him but Harry, who followed suit, covered Artemis with six consecutive Expelliarmus spells, effectively disarming the ones who were still capable of hexing.

Severus kneeled on top of Voldemort's back, his deft fingers busy with strangling Voldemort and trying to drown him in the mud in the midst of the chaos. His own mud-caked face split into a grin as he relished in giving Voldemort a taste of his own medicine…but something was quite wrong. His fingers tried to squeeze out all life from Voldemort, but even though Voldemort could not move, he certainly wasn't showing any signs of weakening, power-wise. _Damn you, damn you_, Severus thought with all his remaining strength and tried even harder. His knees dug into Voldemort's lower back like a Shiatsu massage from hell, trying to fully incapacitate Voldemort, but he himself was slowly weakening as he realized he was probably better off wrestling with a pillow. At least pillows know when they are finally destroyed, when the filling spills out—but with Voldemort, he was just not moving. Period.

It was very frustrating even for a man of a great deal of control. _When will you ever give up?!_ Severus growled mentally at Voldemort, his throat too dry to emit even the smallest sound.

Sensing that it was already a couple of minutes before the charmed port key, Harry's robes, would activate itself, Artemis motioned for Harry to free Juliet as he slashed at another charging Death Eater. Harry nodded, hastily running towards the tombstone where the girl was tied to and charmed the lock open, all the while whispering words of assurance to the traumatized girl. As he helped her up, he saw that Artemis already strode towards Snape with the Invisibility Cloak around his shoulders. _One minute left, Artemis,_ Harry thought, edgy with anticipation and with the fact that he had a half-naked girl huddling close to him under his outer robe.

Artemis had been warned by Harry earlier that there were persons who were able to see through the Invisibility Cloak, but one particular other had his face in the mud, so he was not at all that anxious to be seen. The Death Eaters were slowly regrouping, being apparated to the site one by one via the Dark Mark. _It's time to go,_ a voice in Artemis' head hissed as he lunged at another Death Eater, killing him with a deep wound in his chest. He was somehow morbidly enjoying it, but time was running out. The port key was going to activate anytime soon.

As soon as he reached Severus, he threw the cloak around both of them, and slung his body over his temporarily-broad shoulders. He paid no heed to the white figure slowly rising from the mud, and sprinted towards where Harry and Juliet were waiting, both of them visibly distressed since they could not see Artemis with the Invisibility Cloak. But once Harry noticed that Snape disappeared as well, he knew that Artemis was successful in retrieving him. He waited, once again, on tenterhooks for any tell-tale signs of Artemis and Severus approaching them. 

Harry saw that Voldemort was poised to throw a curse in their direction, and he knew then and there that Artemis was going towards them from that direction; he knew Voldemort was the only one who could see through Invisibility Cloaks at the moment.

Then he felt four hands grabbing at his cloak, and the soft, whispery material of the Invisibility Cloak being thrown above his and Juliet's heads. "Five seconds before the port key is going to activate," Harry croaked, seeing that Voldemort was slowly regaining his strength and was poised to do a curse towards them.

"It will be no good if we run," said Artemis urgently. "We can't—"

And then they disappeared, completely, with Voldemort casting hexes on the tombstone where the four had just been standing a second ago.

It was a new sensation that Artemis had experienced, being pulled by a port key, into a different dimension and out into the target destination. A second ago they were about to be cast multiple Avada Kedavra curses by Voldemort in the deserted cemetery, and the next second they were in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, sprawled on the floor. Artemis and Harry were crouched on the damp tiled floor, thanking whatever deity they had in mind for a mission flawlessly executed. Then they noticed that both Juliet and Severus were staring at them as if they were strangers.

Then Harry realized that there was still two hours before the ageing potion wore off. "It's me, Professor Snape," said Harry tentatively, fearing that Snape would deduct mammoth amount of points from Gryffindor for their blatant rule-breaking.

But Severus was staring at Harry for another reason. Gaping, also. "J-James…" he croaked. "How?"

Harry broke into an embarrassed grin. "I never realized I looked _that_ much like my father," he said, shaking his head. "No, it's me, Harry. Artemis and I just downed Ageing potions. Enhanced type."

"Enhanced type…" Severus repeated softly, so soft that it seemed as if his voice would break. He did not know whether to strangle or kiss his rescuers. "Who brewed the potion?"

Harry was at a loss. He did not want to put Hermione under compromise, not after what help she had given the cause, not to mention that she was running for honors, and top one at that. But he did not want to lie, either, not when Snape was looking so sincere. He would not also take the credit of Hermione's work, in case Snape took a funny turn and started praising him for the potion, which he did not have a hand in.

"Fifty points for Gryffindor, Potter, to Miss Granger," he whispered. He knew that if it was Potter who made the potion, he would blurt it out immediately. "Am I right in giving credit?"

Harry nodded, a big smile reminding Severus of James broke out across his face. "Thanks Professor," he said, self-consciously.

Severus was about to pay regard to Artemis when he saw a particularly heart-wrenching reunion between the kidnap victim and Artemis. Motioning Harry to let them be for a while, they quietly slipped out of the bathroom, opting to wait for them outside.

Artemis was holding Juliet, who was still wrapped in Harry's cloak, around him. "Sssh, it's me, Artemis," said Artemis soothingly at the sobbing Juliet. "I promised, didn't I?"

Juliet nodded mutely, then looked straight into Artemis' eyes. "It's weird seeing you all grown up, Arty," she sniffled, but with a small smile. "I know what you're thinking. It's not your fault…that you are so dead-set on recovering that gold."

Artemis winced at those words. It was _his_ fault that they ended up in that particular place. "I'm sorry, Juliet, so sorry…" he said fervently, wiping off a tear that threatened to spill out of his eye. It was so awkward for both of them to see him losing his control over his emotions, but after the incident where he had such a good minute's worth of hard weeping following the rescue of his beloved father, Artemis lost his hesitancy and embarrassment in expressing his feelings. He only reined them inside in his criminal dealings. 

"Big brother and I also promised to protect you, Artemis, in whatever you do," Juliet said, burying her face in Artemis' robes. "Besides, you have your reasons. We all have reasons. I may not understand much, but we trust you," Juliet said.

Artemis did not know how to react. "I'll find Butler too, Juliet. You can count on me," he promised. "Butler's not going to pull a disappearing act on us. Not now."

Juliet merely nodded weakly.

"Come, let's take you to the Infirmary," he said gently. Juliet nodded and let herself be helped up and led out of the bathroom.

"By the way, Arty, where are we?"

Artemis smiled, a gentle, tentative kind of smile. "I'm still trying to grasp the logic in this place, too, Juliet. But I like it here. You will, too."

****

**Dumbledore's Office**

Harry and Artemis, still under the Ageing Potion effect, sat on the chairs before the fireplace. Remus Lupin stood leaning on the closed door behind him, while Sirius, still in his dog form, was curled up between Harry and Artemis' chairs, hogging the warmth of the fireplace. Severus, partly cleaned but with specks of caked mud still on his person, gingerly sat in the chair across Dumbledore's desk. Minerva was visibly distraught, as was Dumbledore who looked immensely tired. 

"I should suspend you for blatant disregard of my order, Severus," Dumbledore said, but with genuine concern in his voice. "We could not lose you. Not now, when we need you most."

Severus opted not to answer. He believed that his main function in regards to the safety of Hogwarts was his spying, but that usefulness was already gone.

There were other people who could brew excellent potions. Granger, for instance.

Severus looked glum.

"I accept whatever you throw at me, Albus," Severus said feebly. He felt useless. He prided himself for his espionage and ability to brew potions perfectly, but there was a nagging doubt in his heart that somehow, he was going to lose his worth. 

"I explicitly forbid you to leave Hogwarts grounds," said the Headmaster, with equal amounts of steel and care. "Until this war is sorted out. Do you understand?"

Under ordinary circumstances, Severus would have vehemently refused to be treated as such, like a student being forbidden to go to Hogsmeade on weekends. But he humbly complied. "Yes, Headmaster."

"You know very well that you have a key part of the revolution, Severus," said Dumbledore with all seriousness. "Do not go off wandering into the wolves' den just because you have not paid enough for what you have done, Severus. You have already done far more than that."

"I understand, Headmaster." Severus was too weak to throw any more words of resistance nor sarcasm. He just wanted to go to sleep.

Dumbledore then shifted his attention to the two grown-up young heroes by the fireplace. "Harry, you again have broken school rules in order to save lives. I am beginning to fear this trend, but I sincerely doubt that many students are going to emulate you, since they do not want to face the same amount of danger you face every time you do so," he said, his eyes twinkling. "However, I strongly advise you to use caution, and from now on, you should inform me personally if ever you have any plans of a siege." Then he turned his gaze towards grown-up Artemis. "That goes for you, too." His eyes turned thoughtful as he looked upon Artemis. But it disappeared quickly.

Sirius chose that moment to turn into his human self. "I can't get over it," he exclaimed, smiling. "You really are your father's son." Putting a hand over his godson's shoulder, he leaned close to Harry's ear and whispered, "You even inherited the fate of having to save Snape from a deathly end."

That remark, while not heard by the others, received a withering glare from Harry. He knew very well why his father had to save Snape then in the first place. "That's a bad joke, Sirius," he said sternly.

Sirius took that rebuke for granted and merely shrugged. "Just an observation," then he looked at Snape over his shoulder. 

The Potions master looked as if he lost everything in the world and just wanted to sleep, which he really did, and was so sullen and self-defeated that Sirius felt an errant pang of guilt. That was quickly brushed away, though. 

"You should go to bed, Severus," Remus said thoughtfully, Severus' current state reminding him of his unemployment days. Being a werewolf virtually made one a pariah in the Wizardling World, an outcast, but when he made a decision to move into the muggle world wherein werewolves were only figments of imagination, his fears and insecurities were quickly dispelled, not to mention the fact that his neighbors there loved him and his quaint old-fashioned manners. Not to mention the girls loved his striking amber eyes.

_Severus is just misplaced,_ Remus mused. _He needs to find a place where he belongs. I don't know if it is here, though._

"I agree with Remus, Severus. You need rest." Dumbledore stood up and the others followed suit. "We should all have ours, as well."

Taking that as dismissal, all the people assembled in the office began to file out. But Dumbledore held Artemis' arm. "Could I have a word with you, please?" said Dumbledore.

Wondering what the Headmaster had in mind, Artemis just nodded and positioned himself against the mantle of the fireplace. Harry gestured to him that he was going to wait for him outside.

When they were well out of earshot, Dumbledore cleared his throat. "I understand that the plan was of your doing, am I correct?" asked Dumbledore.

"Yes, sir," answered Artemis. "I thought of it as soon as Hogwarts was attacked. However, it should been executed later on, but with Professor Snape being in danger, and Juliet's as well, I felt that it was already the time to do so."

"And why did you choose to use the Ageing Potion?"

"Ah," exclaimed Artemis. "That was to throw off the enemy, and Voldemort seeing familiar faces would not be stunned as long as seeing a stranger," he explained. "However, if one were to see someone whom he didn't know in the middle of something that was to be under secrecy, he would take seconds in trying to identify the stranger," he continued. "Voldemort was particularly stunned at me. Whether he recognized my face, which is quite impossible, since I'm under the Ageing potion," Artemis noticed that shadows passed over Dumbledore's face but was quickly dissipated. "or he was terrified of being caught red-handed. Who knows," Artemis shrugged.

"Voldemort is known for his desire for his activities to be seen," Dumbledore hinted. "Maybe he recognized you."

"And he was that terrified?" Artemis smiled. "I don't know."

"I don't know either," Dumbledore said quietly.

Artemis was feeling quite tired but satisfied when he met up with Harry, Ron and Hermione in the corridors outside the Gryffindor Common Room, with Blaise coming up behind him. There were still thirty minutes to go until the Potion would lose its effect, and Artemis found himself putting every last second of being big and grown-up to good use and relished the sensations of having a tall and lithe body instead of his usual lean and pale frame.

There was a collective gasp when a group of female student who were exiting the Gryffindor Tower saw Artemis approaching the Gryffindor three. He just gave them a weak smile and walked away as fast as he could.

Hermione smiled wryly. "Glad to see that the potion really worked. You should have seen it when Fred and George botched up theirs," said Hermione. "They still looked the same age, but with beards. You should have seen the, Artemis."

"I thank you for your potion, Hermione. Without you, we could not have saved my father," he said, knowing that Hermione did not know his true identity. So did Ron, who…gaped at him.

This was getting Artemis confused. Voldemort looked at him like he was some ghost, then Dumbledore like he recognized him, and yet again, Ron was looking at him the same way as well.

"What is it?" Artemis asked, getting more curious. "I've noticed people giving me that odd look ever since I've grown up."

"Wait here, I'll get something," said Ron as he sprinted through the portrait hole. Within seconds he was back, huffing and puffing, a Wizard Card in his hand. He pulled Artemis close to him and Harry and Hermione also went and looked behind Harry's shoulders.

In the Wizard Card, a man who looked exactly like a grown-up Artemis Fowl from the pale complexion down to the cold blue eyes was wearing black robes and silver trim was standing still, gazing towards them with a grim expression as he held his wand, and a book which obviously looked like a dark tome was tucked under his arm.

Beneath the picture was the caption:

**GRINDELWALD**

Defeated Dark Wizard

One of the most evil Dark Wizards who preceded Voldemort, Grindelwald was the mastermind of many campaigns whose objectives were to

obliterate muggle existence and promote the Superior Wizarding Race mentality among misled wizards and witches. A fluent parseltongue

and expert in the Dark Arts, he was almost successful in his campaigns until Albus Dumbledore, currently Headmaster of Hogwarts,

successfully subdued and defeated him. Grindelwald was also Tom Riddle aka Voldemort's one-time mentor before the latter became fully

immersed in acts of evil.

Read and Review please! And correct me if I made any mistakes in timeline, etc. etc.

Author notes: **Caitlin**: I'm glad that you liked my work!

**InvaderXelith**: Now you know whos "Gr—" !

**sNOw**: Don't worry, I don't always indulge in cliffies even thought I want it ba~adly. Heheh.


	6. Bright Darkness

A Shard's Worth of a Mirror Image

Chapter Six: Bright Darkness

"Grindelwald," breathed Ron. "Artemis, you bloody look like Grindelwald! Haven't Dumbledore told you that?" asked Ron, but without the fear one would expect of him when he encounters a Dark-oriented wizard. No, Ron was clearly _amazed_.

Artemis pursed his lips. _If only computers were running here at Hogwarts,_ he thought. He would have already looked up his genealogy up in some unofficial site erected for him by some silly fangirl. If he only knew that one of the professors had one, and connected to the Faerie High Frequency Network (HFN) at that as well.

"Is it supposed to be that bad?" Harry asked Hermione, his eyes still glued to the grim, yet eerily beautiful man stuck inside the Wizard Card. He knew that he should not share the same views Slytherins usually had regarding bloodlines: that they tell a lot of one's personality. Yes, he knew that somehow Artemis Fowl was cunning, and that he would break a lot of rules himself whenever the need would arise, but Harry trusted Artemis enough, especially after the latter helped him save Snape and also after he had seen the protectiveness and care he held for the girl, Juliet.

Hermione shook her head. "I don't think so, really," she said. "So what if Artemis was related to Grindelwald? What then?" But then as she shifted her gaze from the image in the Wizard Card and towards Artemis then back again, she could not help but feel a little apprehensive. Both men shared the same physical features, but more disturbing was that they even shared the same facial expression.

Harry was also thinking along the same lines, but he could not forget the resemblance between Artemis and Snape. If the three men—er, two men and one boy—had a more _cleaner_ background, he would like to think that it was some funny family reunion. But no.

All three of them just had to be cunning, slightly evil, and _Slytherin_.

"Am I supposed to be disturbed?" asked Artemis as he took the Wizard card and inspected it himself. When he touched it, Artemis could have sworn, the figure of Grindelwald winked at him as if the wizard and he were in some devious plan.

One month later, Christmas Morning 

Artemis woke up the earliest at three in the morning. Deciding that he could not sleep anymore for that day, he put on his cleaned Saint Bartleby uniform sans the blazer and wrapped himself in the thickest robes he could find, then topped it all off with the classic Slytherin forest and pale green scarf. Slipping in his fluffy gray slippers that were short of having bunny ears to make it look complete, he padded quietly out of the Slytherin dungeons and into the Library, which was thankfully left open for those who wanted to do some research in Christmas break.

He was in a magical institution, and he decided to make the most out of it by researching about goblins. He did not forget that retrieving his gold from the goblins was the sole reason that he went in Wizarding Britain. He also did not forget that Butler was still missing, and it was upsetting Juliet more and more each day. However, Artemis had a hunch that Butler was alive and well; one could not believe the dangers the manservant had put himself in: putting up with the Russian Mafiya, training in the most dangerous martial arts, working alongside the Faerie LEPrecon unit, and even surviving the full blast of dwarf fart.

No, Butler would have made his way in the forest. Thing is, where is he?

Now, Artemis had a full time in ticking off the various facts, which he deemed important.

- They were separated in the Forbidden Forest. Artemis went there because of an Intelligence report handed to him by Foaly, a centaur, which told him that the forest was one of the main Goblin mixed-tribe hideouts.

- Goblins in Wizarding Britain were clearly more intelligent than the B'wa Kell of the Lower Elements. How are they related to each other?

- The Goblins stole gold from him. The Wizarding Britain Goblins own the bank named Gringotts, one of the most richest and secure Wizarding banks in the whole world.

- Because students were explicitly forbidden to go out into the forest, and with Artemis under the watchful eye of Dumbledore ever since his resemblance to Grindelwald was discovered, he could not sneak out into the forest. He would have to ask the help of Harry, but even Harry was beginning to become a bit wary of him, even though both were comfortable with each other's identities. It was the potential outcome of Artemis that Harry feared, and expected, the most.

- Death Eaters were found in the Forbidden Forest.

- Severus Snape, one of the Death Eaters, found him in the Forbidden Forest. And brought him to Hogwarts, which means it is the nearest institution to the forest, because Artemis knew that if he were a killer and hit someone whom he didn't mean to, he would leave him in the nearest hospital and leave him there, covering any more tracks. Hogwarts was only the only place with a hospital within reach…which in turn means that Butler is still out in the cold somewhere.

- Come to think of it, Severus should have cast Artemis under the Obliviate spell. Why did he even bother with putting up with Artemis, when he could be easily mind-wiped? There is something else in Severus' mind.

- About Hogwarts, electronic devices could not in there, as well as it could not be seen by Muggle eyes.

- Artemis looked like both Grindelwald and Snape. But he was virtually a clone of Grindelwald.

- Grindelwald was killed by Dumbledore on 1945

Artemis would like to think more, but as the clock turned five in the morning the castle awakened and the scent of Christmas breakfast beckoned for him. As well as the promise of a detection-free visit—later he would ask for Harry's help in combing the Forbidden Forest. 

Artemis felt a bit useless in the Wizarding World since he could not even fly a broomstick. He had to find Butler as soon as possible: it was winter and god knows how strong Butler would be against the elements.

Rubbing his temples, fighting off the quite-late urge to fall back asleep again, he stretched and padded along towards the Great Hall. 

****

The Burrow 

Molly Weasley had finished putting the best porcelain on the table, when Bill, Charlie and Ginny, who opted to spend their Christmas in their home, bounded into the dining room. She gave them a smile and motioned for them to take their seats. Arthur Weasley would be arriving home from his overnight work in the Ministry later and would join them in the Christmas breakfast; and that makes for five plates on the table.

But there was a sixth one placed on the far right of the table next to Bill's. It was Ron's place, but he did not plan on spending Christmas there. "Mum, has Ron changed his mind and coming here?"

"And someone's chopping wood at the backyard, Mummy. What for?" Ginny piped in.

"Oh, him, that's our guest, he always insists on helping out," answered Molly and she put a vase full of poinsettia flowers (well, they're not really flowers but leaves) and sprigs of mistletoe. "Arthur found him wandering in the Forbidden Forest…He's a muggle looking for help after he and his two companions were ambushed by the Death Eaters," she said, lips pursed. "Arthur is looking for a way to help him find his two friends…they were probably kidnapped by the Death Eaters."

"How horrible," gasped Ginny, her hand on her mouth.

"And on Christmas no less," Charlie muttered. "They don't have any restraint."

Bill snorted. "Old Voldemort never grew up, I tell you," he said as he tied his still-wet ponytail with a leather strip.

Molly gave Bill a sharp glance. "Don't you EVER mention that name here, Bill!" she said sharply. Then her tone softened a little. "And would you _please_ do that in your room and not in the dining area?" she said, referring to Bill's tying of his wet hair, which occasionally splattered Ginny with drops of water every time he turned his head.

"Ugh, Bill, stop doing that!" whined Ginny as she wiped a drop of water from her cheek.

"Fine, my dear ladies," said Bill, rolling his eyes. When he saw that his mother was still giving him a sharp look, his face broke out into an apologetic smile. "Um, sorry already?"

"As long as you mind your manners, William Weasley." Molly glanced at the clock by the dining room entrance. "And now, we wait for your father."

Moments passed when a polite knock came from the back door. "I'll take that," Molly said as she strode towards the door in the kitchen connected to the dining room.

Butler was carrying a huge pile of chopped wood by the entrance. "Where do you need this, ma'am?" asked the giant of a man politely.

Molly was a bit stunned by the sight of a muggle man strong enough to carry a five-foot high pile of hard wood as if he were carrying a doll. "Well, yes, um—just put it in here," said Molly, pointing to a vacant corner in the kitchen and stepping back just enough to let the giant with the woodpile in.

Butler was a bit uncomfortable with the robes that the Weasleys gave him to wear—he knew, though, that they had to go to a second hand shop to buy him big-sized robes since he could not wear any of theirs, him being too large than any of them. 

After putting down the woodpile gently with a grunt, he wiped off a sweatdrop on his forehead with the sleeve of his quite-tattered green robes. 

"Thank you very much, Butler," said Molly with sincere gratitude. She wished that Butler were a wizard—if anyone were to have a wizard of his strength on their side, it would be a big boost to their force. She could not have been more right.

Butler shook his head. "No. I thank _you_," said Butler. "For your hospitality and your help in finding master Artemis and my sister for me."

Molly smiled ruefully. "If only we could find them sooner, but Arthur is working on that."

Great Hall, Hogwarts 

Artemis had just finished his plate when Dumbledore and Remus beckoned for him from the other side of the table. Since there were only seven students who stayed in including Harry and Ron, they decided that the staff table was enough for them, pushing it back a little so that they could put more chairs on the front. Artemis pulled back his chair and went over to where the two sat. Not far from there sat Severus, who watched them with hooded eyes. When Artemis deliberately looked at his, Severus started and looked away. _Hmm._

Artemis leaned over to Dumbledore, who was holding the usual vulture-topped hat. "Could you come to my office this afternoon?" asked Dumbledore. 

He nodded. "Yes, sir."

"We just need to do some…testing," said Remus, who sat opposite Dumbledore. "Just to be sure. If it is alright with your father?" Remus said as he regarded Severus with a kind smile. Severus only gave a sharp nod in response.

Artemis could not help but feel sorry for the man who was tasked to cover him by pretending to be his father. Ever since the incident, he became even more sullen and bitter, and lashed at his students with even more bitter words indiscriminately. Artemis somehow knew that it was because Severus was effectively cut off from the cause except in cases wherein his expertise in potion-brewing was solicited.

"Thank you. You can go back to your friends now," Dumbledore said. Artemis gave Remus a polite nod, then walked over to where Severus sat and gave him a light pat on his shoulder. "Could I come down to your office later?" asked Artemis.

"What for?" asked Severus warily. Whenever Artemis wanted to see him, there was always something in the boy's mind. Now was no exception.

"I was wondering if you could tell me more about my…parentage."

Artemis did not miss the slight reaction Snape had as he asked the question, especially after he mentioned 'parentage'. "Very well. You come down my office at five in the afternoon _sharp_." Severus answered after a short fit of discomfort.

Artemis could not help but think about it. _What do they need to test from me?_

The Burrow 

"Oh, I insist!" said Molly as she pushed (which was no mean feat) Butler towards his now-appointed place by the dining table. He was greeted by five red-heads, with the father, who have just arrived, giving him a warm smile. 

"Merry Christmas, Butler," he greeted as the muggle (who was more used in being called mud-man by the way) reluctantly took his seat. "Let me introduce you too half of my children. "This here is Charlie,"

"Hullo," Charlie said with bread still in his mouth. He received a good, hard kick from Ginny as she jerked her head sharply towards their mother. Luckily Molly was busy fussing about the guest.

"And beside him is Bill," he said, referring to the quaint but charming man with the long hair cascading down his shoulders and who sported earrings. "Hello, mate," he greeted as he nodded towards Butler.

"And this charming little girl here is Ginny," Arthur said as she pointed to his youngest daughter. "Oh Dad," Ginny half-moaned as she turned a proper Weasley-red at his remark. "Er, um, hello?" 

"This is the Weasley family as you can see," said Molly as she took her seat beside Arthur. "The other children are at Hogwarts, except for our eldest child Percy, who already works at the Ministry. The three others, Fred, George, and Ron at Hogwarts."

"That's a magical school of wizards, by the way," Bill piped in. "I was one of the top players of Quidditch there."

"Quidditch?" asked Butler.

"Now, now, children," chuckled Arthur, which was nice to hear especially on a Christmas, "Don't overload the guest here with too much information. You should take it little by little…perhaps you would like to share what the latest in your technology could do?" he asked Butler. "I really like to—"

Now it was Molly who gave Arthur a swift hard kick in the shins under the table. "Arthur!" then she looked apologetically at Butler, who was a bit amused with the blatant show of family affection. "Sorry about that. It's just because wizards are forbidden to tinker with muggle technology since it could result to muggles discovering our existence…but you're an exception since you need our help."

"I see," Butler said. There was an awkward silence after that, since Molly cut the desired thread of conversation off short.

Ginny decided to pick it up again. "Um, speaking of Hogwarts, something new happened," she said tentatively. She was not really used to being a conversation starter.

When she saw that all eyes were on her, she continued, "A kid just about Ron's age entered Hogwarts about two months before," she said as she speared her turkey. "It turned out that he was Professor Snape's son. He was sorted into Slytherin."

Arthur spluttered. "Snape? Has a son?"

Charlie and Bill looked at each other then laughed. "Oh, I am soooo fainting," Charlie mocked-swooned as if in a faint. Then he rightened himself up. "Really?"

Molly shrugged her shoulders. "Well, its not really our business how Snape had a son. Maybe we should be just glad that he took custody of him."

"Well, yes, but Snape…you know his part in the battle." Arthur shook his head. "It would be dangerous if ever he attached himself to other people. They could be his weakness and would just be exploited."

"I agree," said Bill. "The Death Eaters would do anything…" then his gaze went to Butler, who paled a bit at the mention of the Death Eaters. "Oh. Sorry."

Butler shook his head. "That's alright."

Charlie decided to ignore that particular thread. "So Ginny, what was the new kid's name?"

"Artemis Snape."

Butler started so abruptly that the table shook. "Could you please repeat the name please?"

"Artemis Snape."

_Damn…_ But Butler decided to push it. "How does he look like?"

"Um…black hair, blue eyes, really pale?"

"Is he with a blonde haired girl about his age?" Butler could hear his heartbeat going fast.

"Well…yes. She's the new assistant for Madame Pomfrey...her name's Julia, or Juliet I think…"

"Oh, oh god," Butler felt his knees going weak with utter relief. "That's them. I guess you people found her," he laughed weakly which was an attempt to stifle a cry. "Thank you."

Arthur and Molly looked at each other, well-pleased that their guest had found the people he was looking for, and what's important was that they were safe.

"You've got to hand it to Severus," Arthur said. "I bet he had a hand in their rescue."

Molly sighed. "If only Errol was still with us," she said, "we would have sent Severus a message in the first place. Too bad we could not afford to replace him."

Dumbledore's Office 

Artemis stood in the middle of a makeshift pentagram drawn by Remus on the carpet. It was nicely done, and Dumbledore decided to keep the drawing even after the testing. Artemis could not help but feel tingles rising up from his feet, through his spine and into his head. He decided that it felt nice.

"Now, Artemis, do you feel anything there?" Remus asked, standing just a few inches away from the outer fringes of the pentagram. He was wearing reading glasses and had a parchment in his left hand, while he tapped his wand with it. From time to time he would tap his wand on the unrolled parchment and he would peer at it through the glasses, as if he was gauging something.

"Yes, and it's like a current running through my body. Upwards." Artemis answered.

"Good. Now, lift your wand arm—er, I mean, your writing hand, please."

As he did so, small blue sparks emanated from his right hand. He could not help but be at awe, not to mention that he was extremely excited. What if he had powers?

"Well, that just about takes care of it," Remus said, roling the parchment and taking off his glasses.

"Well?" Artemis inquired.

"You do have wizarding blood, all right," Remus said matter-of-factly. Artemis let in a sharp intake of breath. 

"Only, you're a squib."

Artemis' shoulders slumped. "A wizard who doesn't have any powers," he said feebly. "That's new."

Right at that moment, Dumbledore, who had momentarily left his office in order that Remus and Artemis had some privacy, barged in with some good news.

"Artemis, did you receive anything for Christmas?"

Artemis nodded even though he could not comprehend the reason behind the question. Harry gave him a bag of Bertie Bott's Beans and Ron handed him a pack of custom Weasley Wizard Wheezes.

"Perhaps you should add this to you pile, Artemis," Dumbledore said with a twinkle in his eyes. "Arthur Weasley, Ron's father, had brought here your other companion. He is with Juliet as of this moment."

Artemis' knees folded and he gave a tearful smile to Dumbledore.

"Thank…thank god."

Four hours later, the Dungeons 

With the joyful reunion behind him, Artemis gleefully (which is a total disregard of control for him) ran through the corridors towards Snape's Office.

He knocked on the familiar heavy oak door, and pushed it as soon as the resonant voice of the Slytherin Head of House beckoned him in.

The scene behind the door was dark, and Artemis had to squint his eyes just to see clearly.

Suddenly, he was pulled by two strong hands and with a wand tip pushing against his neck.

"The great descendant of Grindelwald. How touching that you should save me from your own student, but I am beyond your tricks," Severus growled at his ear.


	7. Domestic Bliss

A Shard's Worth of a Mirror Image

Chapter Seven: Domestic Bliss

Author's Note: I sincerely apologize for not having updated for many months, for so long that it appears as if there a quite a discrepancy between this chapter and the previous one. But do not worry, I am just gaining momentum and will get back to track in the very next chapter.

Despite strong, slender fingers trying to squeeze every last bit of Artemis' breath and thus his life as well, he managed to choke out, "W-what is this for?" His hands trying to pull Severus' hands away from his almost crushed neck, and in his pain-filled haze he wondered whether this was retribution to whatever he had done wrong. 

In all actuality, Artemis never did anything that harmed others…in a most painful way. True, he may have stolen money, but those were from other big-time thieves as well. He may not be a Robin Hood who gave the loot to the poor, but at least he did not kill anybody…yet.

As he struggled to breathe his last, he suddenly felt the assailant's fingers go lax and finally let him go. Artemis stumbled forward and tried to regain his balance with a hand against a nearby table, his other hand gently rubbing his extremely sore neck.

"Lumos," Severus whispered, the candles suddenly lighting all at once, somehow erasing the deathly picture that was a few moments ago. "Right, he did not send you," the Potions master brusquely said, as if he did nothing that almost robbed Artemis of his life. He offered a supporting arm to Artemis, only for it to be pushed away.

"What was—that for?" Artemis demanded, between coughs and barely suppressed hacking. 

"If you were in my place and someone shows up looking like your evil _grandfather_ you'd be fearing for your life, I assure you," Severus said as he turned his back on Artemis. "What do you prefer to drink?"

Artemis dusted himself and took to sit down instead of shouting at his foster father. _He has a point; I'd probably do the same thing._ "Tea. Iced tea, please. And no more uncalled for violence, please."

Severus paused for a moment; white color crept onto his face but was dispelled immediately.

There was a faint sound of cupboard-rummaging from the far side of the room as Severus searched for tea. "I would like to apologize," he said sincerely albeit with a curt air of someone who had everything he did justified; at least, in his own terms. "for ruining your holiday, but I love my life more than your few days of unduly-free romping."

Artemis decided, with a sigh, that it was the closest he could ever get to an apology. "I would not come here in my own volition defenseless," he said, his voice laced with steel though half-heartedly. A frosted glass full of probably too-sweet liquid was plonked soundly on the placemat in front of him, but he was wary enough not to drink much less touch it. 

"With your power?" Severus nonchalantly asked as he dried his hands with the front of his robes but Artemis knew that he was testing him.

"I suppose that you do not know that I'm a Squib," the boy remarked dryly. "I thought it was already obvious, with me not enrolled in this school and all that."

"Anything could happen," Severus said evenly, looking down at the seated boy, still wary. Then he noticed that Artemis was not touching his glass. "Do you sense something amiss in that liquid?"

The boy gave him a soundly withering look. "What is the benign iced tea doing in your stores, anyway? But let me rephrase that: is this even iced tea?" Artemis gingerly nudged the sweating glass with a slender finger, cool eyes locked Severus' blank stare.

For a moment Severus looked as if he was taken aback but that was quickly brushed off. "Of course it is. But not of the lemon kind; Albus already owns all the lemon-flavored consumables Hogwarts could handle. That one is of honey and orange rind."

"Ah." Artemis quickly grabbed the glass and drank from it.

It was Severus' turn to give a shrewd grin. "Do you even trust me with what you are drinking?"

"Dumbledore will have your head," Artemis replied without taking his lips off the glass.

Severus laughed; a dry, hoarse laugh that was either forced or with some underlying negative emotion. 

"You spoke of asking about your parentage, Fowl. I think you already know about it."

Artemis' brows knitted at that remark. Later, as he left the Potions Master's quarters, he felt a little disturbed and his brain itched, as if trying to find some information that was supposed to be there.

As soon as he closed the door before him, Severus collapsed, blaming himself for the slip.

The Gryffindor Three lounged in the Gryffindor Common Room, secure with their privacy in the Holidays. Ron was quite happy that Hermione decided to spend her Christmas vacation in Hogwarts, as he was staring at Hermione—whose back was towards the fireplace—and he was finally coming to terms with what was bothering him about her. Hermione though, proved to be denser than Ron when it came to that.

Harry, who chose to lie on his stomach on a particularly comfortable throw pillow was burying himself deep in his thoughts. He was about to doze off when Hermione chose to break the silence.

"Stop it Ron, you're embarrassing me."

Harry looked up and saw Hermione's face (a pretty one) turning Weasley-red. Ron himself looked quite shocked as if someone had doused cold water over him and that he had only just realized what he had done. Which in fact, Harry decided, he did.

"What do you think of Artemis' being Grindelwald's look alike?" Harry asked abruptly, trying to save his friends from further embarrassment.

Hermione snapped that up quickly. "It means that it is possible that he really is the Heir. I mean," she straightened her sitting posture to gain some kind of an authoritative pose, "he already looks—and acts, mind you—like he was tied up with Dark magic a long time since."

"But how is that even possible? He can't do any magic, Herm. That one that he did when the Death Eaters entered the school, it was just some kind of mechanism." Ron interjected, as if nothing had happened.

"How could you explain off that attitude and cunning? It's pure Slytherin."

"There are Muggles like that, Hermione."

"True," murmured Harry. "But the Artemis guy certainly has a different air about him."

Hermione was about to say something that affirmed Harry's comments when a knock came from the portrait hole. Harry stood up and stretched. "I'll get it."

Artemis' face peeked out the moment Harry pulled the door in. 

"Speak o' the devil, Artemis," Ron exclaimed. "Come on in."

Artemis sat down on one of the cushy chairs charmed to a red color with decorative green sprigs. "I came to thank you for the presents I got—and to apologize for not giving you any."

Ron threw one of the small pillows at him. "Lay off it, Fowl. We understand."

Hermione nodded, but did leave her surreptitious gaze on Artemis' face. "The lack of ATMs here could explain why."

Letting his back relax and rubbing his hurt neck from the previous encounter, Artemis about whether or not to tell them of the news that he was a Squib. There was the matter of his pride after all, but finally decided that he was born to be a Muggle anyway, and not to the world of wizards.

"I'm a Squib," he blurted out, with much difficulty that he had to expel those few words quickly. If he were a more normal person, Artemis would have fidgeted as well.

"Sorry?"

Artemis sighed. "A Squib, Ron. A Squib."

"Well, is it supposed to matter?" Harry pushed himself up and straightened his robes, and he looked as if he was decided on a matter that he had been thinking for the longest time. "Want to come with me, Fowl?"

"Where to?"

"To the Astronomy Tower."

Ron and Hermione motioned to go as well, but Harry stopped them with a wave of his hand. "Sorry you guys, but this is something that us semi-gits have to discuss."

"Semi-gits? What is that about?" Artemis asked.

Harry pulled on his arm and led him out of the Portrait hole. "Shut up and go with me, Fowl."

Artemis in turn muttered about uncultured prats.

Remus thought that he had espied Harry and Artemis coming up the way to the Astronomy Tower, but he realized that there really was no reason to stop them. He had a more important matter to deal along with a certain grumpy co-professor. The full moon was nearing, and he needed a dose to take the next day.

When he opened the door to Professor Snape's office, he was greeted with a slumped form of black greasy git over the worktable. Remus had the grace to look alarmed.

"Severus, what happened to you?"

Severus did not even bother lifting his face from the table when he answered. "If you came for the potion Lupin, it is in the back room, in a cauldron of foul smell." The voice came out muffled, as if Severus was kissing the table.

"Right, I know that, it's impossible not to notice," Remus muttered, his sense of smell almost shattered by the rancid scent of Wolfsbane Potion. He walked towards Severus, arms crossed. "Answer me. What happened?"

No answer.

Sighing and praying to all the spirits that inhabited the school and most especially nearest to their area, Remus pulled Snape by the hair and forced the man upright on his chair. "Look, Snape. I have known you for many years and never have I seen you lose control like this."

Snape's face was irate and had a red blotch on his forehead where his arm had supported his head for a long time he was slumped on the table. "If I really was in trouble, Lupin, would I come to you for help?"

"You came to ask me about Fowl's background."

Snape threw Remus off him and flew off in a rage. "THAT'S AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT MATTER!" he spat, and just barely missed swiping a shelf-full of potion bottles with a careless arm. "Don't prattle off as if you know _everything!_"

Remus blinked; he did not expect that Severus was that much bothered. But he forced himself not to show his bewilderment; he needed to know what was happening. His entirely dependable gut feelings knew that this matter was of utmost importance.

"Still, I could be trusted with secrets, Severus."

Severus winced, as if Remus mentioned something that hit a raw nerve.

"I would not trust this _particular_ secret to anyone else except myself, Lupin," Severus murmured, mellowing down a bit.

Remus shook his head and decided that he was wishing for the moon if he even hoped that Snape would tell him about his immense problem. Shrugging, he turned towards the door. "Fine. Be that way, Severus. I just hope that you won't die sooner."

When he reached the door, Snape muttered few words that Remus never thought he would hear from Snape. They came out grated and hoarse, the inexplicable pain alone wrenching guilt from the werewolf.

"I slipped, Lupin, I told Fowl that my grandfather was Grindelwald."

Artemis shivered in the cold; he pulled his robes closer to him and let his scarf partly cover his mouth. He espied Harry not exhibiting any indications that he was affected by the cold; he probably did a Warming Spell on him.

The Astronomy Tower lets one see the sky in it's fullest glory; and when standing by it's edge in the dead of winter, unfolds the deathly beauty of the fourth season, the one that belonged to Death. The two boys leaned over the border and looked down on the desolately beautiful surroundings. 

"Do you know why I brought you into this place, Artemis?"

"No."

"Because in this place, no one can hear you scream."

Artemis' face snapped up, only to meet the green eyes of a very serious Harry Potter. Artemis lost all sensation of cold that enveloped him as his heart thudded and he tightened his fists, yet his face was impassive.

"What is it that you want?" Artemis asked.

Harry closed his eyes and inhaled deeply of the bitingly cold air, then with a steely voice said, "I owe the nature of my existence to Voldemort, and my fate has been laid out before me, but not for me: to kill him."

Artemis relaxed; the words were enough to reassure him that he was with a genuine student and not an impostor. Still, he did not take off his guarded expression. 

"And it is either you want me to leave so that the danger would leave Hogwarts as well; or because you want me to pledge allegiance to you, am I right in assuming those?"

"The second, Artemis." Harry wandered off to the far side of the tower, gazing down at the cold wonderland. "To be frank, I do not want you to leave. Even though you have your companions back."

"I would not leave, but they will."

"I need your word."

Artemis frowned disapprivingly. "Why? Why go to all this trouble? You and the few professor who know about my identity know very well that I ended up in this area with a specific purpose in mind, and it is to deal with the goblins."

Harry looked sideways at Artemis. "It's not because of that. The reason for this is while I trust you that you will always act out in good intentions, but I do not trust you in not ending up becoming my enemy."

"What?" Artemis had never become so confused in all his life. Clearly, Harry was thinking about something for so long and so privately that just hearing him sprouting off about it made him think as if he was listening to another person talking. The change was so great.


End file.
